Drug-coating stents can improve the effectiveness of stents by effective therapeutic compounds or drugs to the target site. For example, anti-inflammatory or anti-thrombogenic compounds may be carried by a drug-polymer coating and released after insertion and deployment of the stent. These drugs and coatings can reduce the trauma to the local tissue bed, aid in the healing process, and significantly reduce the narrowing or constriction of the blood vessel that can recur after stent placement.
The ideal drug polymer coating must be able to adhere strongly to the metal stent framework both before and after delivery of the stent, and be able to control release the drug at sufficient therapeutic levels for several days, weeks or longer. Unfortunately, some drug polymers remain on the stent after their function of drug delivery has been completed. Polymer remaining on the stent after drug elution may cause an unfavorable result, such as thrombogenesis.
It would be desirable, therefore, to have a method for removing the polymer coating from a polymer coated drug delivery stent after drug elution that overcomes these and other disadvantages.